May 27, 2017

THEY MADE THE FLIGHT 93 ELECTION:

"This suspect was on the train and he was yelling and ranting and raving a lot of different things, including what we characterized at hate speech or biased language," Portland police spokesman Pete Simpson said at a news conference Friday evening.

At least two men tried to calm the ranting passenger down, but "they were attacked viciously by the suspect" when they did, Simpson said.

"It appears preliminarily that the victims -- at least a couple of them -- were trying to intervene in his behavior, deescalate him and protect some other people on the train when [the suspect] viciously attacked them," Simpson said.

About 4:30 p.m. Friday, police responded to calls of a disturbance at the Hollywood Transit Station in east Portland. There, they found three stabbing victims, all adult men. Despite attempted lifesaving measures, Best, a resident of Happy Valley, Ore., was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Namkai Meche, of southeast Portland, died at a local hospital; Fletcher, of southeast Portland, is expected to survive, police said Saturday.

The attacks occurred just as Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, was set to commence at sunset Friday. Simpson said that Portland police had already reached out to Muslim organizations, mosques and imams in the community to talk about extra patrols during Ramadan -- and that those extra patrols would continue.

"Our thoughts are with the Muslim community," Simpson said Friday. "As something like this happens, this only instills fear in that community."

On Saturday, people mourned the stabbing victims and praised them as heroes for their actions. Namkai Meche's sister, Vajra Alaya-Maitreya, emailed a statement to The Washington Post on behalf of their family, saying her brother lived "a joyous and full life" with an enthusiasm that was infectious.

"We lost him in a senseless act that brought close to home the insidious rift of prejudice and intolerance that is too familiar, too common. He was resolute in his conduct (and) respect of all people," she wrote. "In his final act of bravery, he held true to what he believed is the way forward. He will live in our hearts forever as the just, brave, loving, hilarious and beautiful soul he was. We ask that in honor of his memory, we use this tragedy as an opportunity for reflection and change. We choose love."